Deleting Songs From Classic TV Show Episodes

[DToTheJ]

Due to music royalty issues, classic songs that used to be heard on episodes of old TV shows have been etiher replaced by generic music or yanked outright. Everybody knows that the biggest victim is "WKRP".

Does anyone have other examples? I have one: The other day, I watched an episode of "ALF" (all episodes are on YouTube); it was the episode in which the alien meets a blind friend through a radio show and actually stops by her house. She asked what music ALF wanted to hear, and he wanted Alvin and the Chipmunks.

I remember an ensuing exchange as if I saw the episode for the first time:

(Blind woman and ALF sing to the Chipmunks Christmas song)

(Lynn, waiting outside the door to pick ALF up whispers ALF's name)

Blind woman: Did you say something?

ALF: Oh, I said... Alvin... Yeah, Alvin... He's my favorite.

Blind woman: I like Theodore.

ALF: I hate Dave. He's intrusive.

(Lynn calls ALF's name again; blind woman turns off the radio...)

That entire exchange I just described was cut out of the episode currently on YouTube. The problem here is, if you watch the YouTube episode and weren't aware of this edited scene, you would think that ALF was only over the blind woman's place for only two minutes, because the scene never "changed"! So this was poor execution on Lionsgate's (the distributor) part.

Any other examples of songs deleted from TV shows aside from the two above?

 

[Paige Turner]

Any other examples of songs deleted from TV shows aside from the two above?

Tour Of Duty in the late '80s featured Vietnam-era songs from the late '60s (Rolling Stones, etc). They've all been removed from the DVD sets.

 

[easttxtv]

I just saw ads recently about Ally McBeal coming out on DVD, and I'm wondering how much of it will come out unscathed musically. There would be a lot of scenes to cut (especially regarding Barry White) if music were really an issue with the release.

 

[71dude]

Taxi - Vienna Waits and Sunshine of My Life are gone from the DVD versions.

The Odd Couple was heavily butchered for DVD as well.

 

[LKellerIII]

Taxi - Vienna Waits and Sunshine of My Life are gone from the DVD versions.

The Odd Couple was heavily butchered for DVD as well.

I've read posts about this in the past, especially in regard to the butchering of songs in WKRP. I have a question about why this happens:

Does it typically happen because the 'owner' of the song rights does not want to give permission for a later use of the song (for an off-network rerun or DVD release), or is it because the producers of the show don't way to pay the royalties again?

Thanks.

 

[azumanga]

I just saw ads recently about Ally McBeal coming out on DVD, and I'm wondering how much of it will come out unscathed musically. There would be a lot of scenes to cut (especially regarding Barry White) if music were really an issue with the release.

As I read, music was the main reason why an Ally set was delayed for so long -- since others' music was an integral part of the series' soundtrack, the producers wanted to get the rights to as much music as they can before they released the DVD set.

I've read posts about this in the past, especially in regard to the butchering of songs in WKRP. I have a question about why this happens:

Does it typically happen because the 'owner' of the song rights does not want to give permission for a later use of the song (for an off-network rerun or DVD release), or is it because the producers of the show don't way to pay the royalties again?

I think it goes either way -- in some cases, because the program's owner does not want to spend the extra expense to get the rights of the songs, in order to keep the MSRP affordable for consumers. (On the same token, in my opinion, there are some who were just lazy and don't want to bother to go the extra mile.)

There are some instances in which the song's owners, writers or artists refuse to have their song on a DVD set -- on the latest "Buffalo Bill" set (with Dabney Coleman), a memorable scene featuring Bill's nightmare involving Ray Charles' "Hit The Road Jack" was excised. The creator of the show had to include a special disclaimer before that episode, explaining that Ray refused to allow the song on the DVD set at any price.

 

[mleach]

There are some instances in which the song's owners, writers or artists refuse to have their song on a DVD set -- on the latest "Buffalo Bill" set (with Dabney Coleman), a memorable scene featuring Bill's nightmare involving Ray Charles' "Hit The Road Jack" was excised. The creator of the show had to include a special disclaimer before that episode, explaining that Ray refused to allow the song on the DVD set at any price.

Sounds very similar to Rod Stewart and "Alice".

In one epiosde of Alice, Linda Lavin and Martha Raye were singing a duet, at first dressed up as little old ladies singing about "having tea" or something. Then Lavin & Raye took off their old lady outfits and stripped down to workout gear and started to sing "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy". From what I can remember reading in TV Guide at the time...Rod Stewart wasn't happy. He knew of course about the song being on Alice but he had no idea that Martha Raye would "butcher" it. LOL

While that scene did air when Alice was sydicated, I wouldn't be surprised if Rod would veto that bit if Alice goes DVD on a season to season basis.

 

[Hal Erickson]

This isn't a sitcom, but reportedly the DVD release of JUDGING AMY has been held up indefinitely due to legal tangles over the incidental songs heard in each episode.

 

[LKellerIII]

I've read posts about this in the past, especially in regard to the butchering of songs in WKRP. I have a question about why this happens:

Does it typically happen because the 'owner' of the song rights does not want to give permission for a later use of the song (for an off-network rerun or DVD release), or is it because the producers of the show don't way to pay the royalties again?

I think it goes either way -- in some cases, because the program's owner does not want to spend the extra expense to get the rights of the songs, in order to keep the MSRP affordable for consumers. (On the same token, in my opinion, there are some who were just lazy and don't want to bother to go the extra mile.)

There are some instances in which the song's owners, writers or artists refuse to have their song on a DVD set -- on the latest "Buffalo Bill" set (with Dabney Coleman), a memorable scene featuring Bill's nightmare involving Ray Charles' "Hit The Road Jack" was excised. The creator of the show had to include a special disclaimer before that episode, explaining that Ray refused to allow the song on the DVD set at any price.

Good explanation - thanks. Another observation and question:

As a kid in the 1960s, I remember that you would often see a scene in a TV drama or detective show that would include a piece of music as background. Example - Joe Mannix (or whoever) would go to a saloon to question a witness. As part of the "atmosphere," there would be "live" music playing in the background...a small jazz combo or a guy playing a piano. The music would not be part of the show's soundtrack in other words. This music would often be very generic - no song I could recognize, and often a song lacking in any real tune. In some cases, the piano guy would be playing the show's theme song.

I thought at the time that this was unrealistic and stupid. But I wonder now - these shows were low budget compared to comparable shows of the 1980s and since then. So perhaps this was done to avoid having to pay royalties for a real song. (?)

 

[Markieo]

CBS took all of Jim Nabors singing performances out of the "Gomer Pyle-USMC" DVD's. Out of all the DVD companies and their music licensing issues, CBS-Paramount is the worst, followed by Fox.

 

[ShawnHill1]

Not sure if this exactly qualifies, but from the episodes I saw posted on YouTube, the theme songs from Married...with Children (the opening is, of course, Frank Sinatra's "Love and Marriage") were replaced by awful, generic music.

 

[flytrap]

One of the best shows of the late 80's and 90's was The Wonder Years. The songs was one of the most important parts of the series, it set up each trip down memory lane. Unfortunately the show may never be issued in a complete form due to the music clearences. Even clips of the shows that people taped off the air have had the soundtracks removed on youtube. If you have any of the budget DVD's of the Beverly Hillbillies or Bonanza they have the opening themes removed. The beverly hillbillies theme has been replaced with generic bluegrass music. while bonanza has something called "return to the Poderosa" as its theme. it took a long time for Freaks and Geeks to be released due to the copyrights, and I've heard there may be no new releases of Malcolm in the Middle for the same reason.

 

[TexasTom]

Two other shows with performance rights issues for music are "Quantum Leap" and "Roswell". Both have had at least some of the music replaced on the DVD releases, and in the case of "Roswell", I think that they also replaced much of the music in cable reruns.

 

[mleach]

One of the best shows of the late 80's and 90's was The Wonder Years. The songs was one of the most important parts of the series, it set up each trip down memory lane. Unfortunately the show may never be issued in a complete form due to the music clearences. Even clips of the shows that people taped off the air have had the soundtracks removed on youtube. If you have any of the budget DVD's of the Beverly Hillbillies or Bonanza they have the opening themes removed. The beverly hillbillies theme has been replaced with generic bluegrass music. while bonanza has something called "return to the Poderosa" as its theme. it took a long time for Freaks and Geeks to be released due to the copyrights, and I've heard there may be no new releases of Malcolm in the Middle for the same reason.

With some of the older shows like WKRP, Bonanza and the others I can see the music rights issue..well being an issue since in those days nobody knew about DVDs and tapes of these shows being available in stores, online and such. But the later ones say from the mid 80s onward...one would think the people behind the shows knew there would be a time when their shows will sooner or later be available on VHS and DVDs...and one would think they would had covered their bases when it came to the original music that was featured on those programs.

The Wonder Years should had planned ahead since even in 1988 there was a growing market of TV shows being available on VHS. I believe "I Love Lucy" had started that trend in 1985.

 

[cowboybud]

I believe an early episode of Growing Pains had a Bruce Springsteen song removed for the DVD release.

 

[DToTheJ]

Not sure if this exactly qualifies, but from the episodes I saw posted on YouTube, the theme songs from Married...with Children (the opening is, of course, Frank Sinatra's "Love and Marriage") were replaced by awful, generic music.

I was actually reminded about that instance, and was about to post this to the thread as well. In fact, I recall writing a similar complaint about the replacement of the Sinatra theme song from "M w/C" DVD sets from the third season onward here on this board - because I own a few of them, haha!

 

[FreddyE1977]

CBS took all of Jim Nabors singing performances out of the "Gomer Pyle-USMC" DVD's. Out of all the DVD companies and their music licensing issues, CBS-Paramount is the worst, followed by Fox.

Wow, there are some episodes where that would leave you with about 8 min. of material!

Lawyers, screwing-up life for the rest of us since 67 A.D. !

 

[nightfly61]

I only have seasons 1-3 of Family Ties but wonder of the later season 4 "breakup" episode where Alex & Ellen split & "At This Moment" by Billy Vera & The Beaters was on the jukebox was changed.

On a different note, Knight Rider was notorious for using cheesy, fake versions of popular songs that fit the situation (Take It Easy, Go Your Own Way, etc). I would have just as soon heard prod music.

 

[Braves2005]

CBS took all of Jim Nabors singing performances out of the "Gomer Pyle-USMC" DVD's. Out of all the DVD companies and their music licensing issues, CBS-Paramount is the worst, followed by Fox.

Gomer sang The Impossible Dream in the episode where they are in Washington D.C. for the talent showcase for the military is on the Gomer Pyle season 4 DVD.

 

[Markieo]

CBS took all of Jim Nabors singing performances out of the "Gomer Pyle-USMC" DVD's. Out of all the DVD companies and their music licensing issues, CBS-Paramount is the worst, followed by Fox.

Gomer sang The Impossible Dream in the episode where they are in Washington D.C. for the talent showcase for the military is on the Gomer Pyle season 4 DVD.

I must have missed that one, or the song was available for cheap...